Rebel Love Song
by SilverPenguin87
Summary: ADOPTED FROM ANAGRAM FOR GRACE ORIGINALLY CALLED YOUR GUARDIAN ANGEL! Clary starts off in a new school, with a chemistry classmate who won't stop flirting, a locker that doesn't lock, and a chemistry teacher who already hates her. Join her as she makes friends, and tries to survive high school.
1. Chapter 1

XChapter-OneX

I was touring my brand new hell (also known as school), the day before I started. Already I hated it. The echoes of my guidance counselor's and my feet echoed in the empty halls. I was looking at the walls as we were walking. Taking in the sparse posters about various clubs and extra lessons for those who needed it. It wasn't even the first day. In my head, I was imagining the teachers running around in the silence of the night, taping the posters up. I shook my head. Not even an hour in this school and I was already going crazy.

I'm sure I was being enlightened on the colorful history of the school but I honestly didn't care. My mind was stuck on the fact that this was the rejects school. Here was the place where all the kids within fifty miles transferred to when they got kicked out of decent and respectable public education institutes. This was the place I would be spending my last two years of high school. Oh, joy.

The tour ended at my assigned locker and I threw my bag inside and automatically reached for the lock… which wasn't there.

"These lockers were all donated," the counselor explained, "and here at St. Jude's we have a very trusting atmosphere amongst the student body. Locking lockers has never been an issue." Her warm smile obviously was meant to calm me. Guess who would be keeping their stuff locked in the trunk of their car?

"You really don't have issues with stealing?" I asked incredulously.

Her answering smile was just the tiniest bit late. "You'll soon settle in here, Clare. I know it."

"It's Clary. Rhymes with Mary but starts with a Cl."

"I'm sorry Clary, forgive me."

Heck no.

"Well I guess this takes care of everything then. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow!"

I mimicked her fake smile as I stalked away. Kill. Me. Now.

The next day I wore mourning clothes to school, and decided to do my eyeliner thicker than normal. I wore black skinnys, my patent Doc Martens, and a black jumper. I'd put my hair up in a messy pony, with the fringe just slightly falling into my eyes.

Well, not exactly mourning clothes, but I did wear almost all black for several reasons. The first, because I was in mourning for my past life. Second, because when I wear black it annoys my mother who had been more than a bit annoyingly optimistic about this new school. And third, because I didn't bother to take the time to find anything else.

As I ran out the front door, I caught a glimpse of my own reflection in the hall mirror. My hair looked especially fiery against my black v-neck sweater which also caused my skin to look paler and my eyes greener. I quickly checked to make sure my skinny jeans were settled correctly over my Docs before dashing to my car.

I drove carefully, doing my best to see the faces of other drivers on their way to school. I guess I was attempting to prepare myself for whatever I would find.

The student parking lot was half way full by the time I got there. I pulled into a space, turned off the engine, and sat there collecting myself for a few moments. _You can do this, Clary Fray, _I told myself. Quickly, so as not to have a chance to change my mind, I clambered gracelessly out of my tin can, locked the doors, and headed briskly towards the desolate building. Around me kids were calling to each other, talking and laughing. Surrounded by people, I had never felt so alone.

I let the tide sweep me to my defenseless locker where I immediately began rummaging through my bag just so I didn't look/feel so awkward. First lesson on the first day of school: Show up just before the bell rings. Otherwise the fact that you're friendless becomes extremely apparent.

Mercifully, the bell rang shortly after I had organized my books for first hour class, chemistry. Holding my schedule in front of my nose like the new kid I was, I navigated the sea of bodies until I found my prison cell. On the board was posted a seating arrangement and I was quick to find my name. One glance around the room, however, showed me that my seat was already occupied by someone. A couple of someones actually. A blonde couple was openly groping each other. Ew.

"Um, excuse me? This is my seat." I tried not to sound bitchy but I think I failed.

They both turned to glare at me.

"Does it have your name on it?" the boy asked.

I glared at him, hating him all the more for his arrogance because of his looks. Tall, built, gold eyes. Damn handsomeness. "Actually, it does."

"Where?"

"Dude, seriously, just get out of my seat. I don't want to deal with this crap today."

With a smirk he and his girlfriend stood up. "There you go, short stuff."

I glared up at him for a second and then sat down, determined to ignore him for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, he was assigned the seat next to mine. So much for my plans.

"Does everyone have their summer projects finished?" the teacher called. "Everyone who does not have their summer assignment done, stand up." A couple kids in the back got to their feet, I perched awkwardly at the edge of my seat, not sure what to do. "Anyone who does not know what I am talking about, leave the room. Now. I don't have time to teach idiots."

Cautiously I raised my hand.

"What?" was the response I got.

"I wasn't informed what the summer project was."

"Leave. Did I not make myself clear? If you don't have the ability or desire to listen, you may as well leave the class now. You're going to fail."

Asshat.

"I'm new," I continued.

"Does it look like I care? You don't have the assignment done, no excuses."

"I didn't even go here!" I cried.

The room grew deadly silent.

"That is _enough _of your attitude. I suggest you remove yourself from the class now," he threatened.

I stared at him in disbelief. "How is this an attitude issue?"

"Do you want a detention?" he hissed at me.

"Why would I get a detention for this? I'm a new student at this school. I was not supplied with any information on summer projects."

His expression was a mask mocking concern. "I don't see how that's my problem, Miss Fray. But I will be seeing you after school today for detention."

"You're kidding."

"Office! Now!"

I grabbed my things and tried my hardest not to stomp to the door. I could sense someone was staring at me and I had the oddest feeling that it was Mr. PDA-gold eyes.

Well hello there! This is my first foray into the world of The Mortal Instruments fanfics. I've adopted this story from Anagram for Grace, and it was originally called 'Your Guardian Angel'. She has kindly let me use the chapters she had already put up, so don't accuse me of plagiarism. While the original outline of the chapters will remain the same, I'll be adding a few spins to it. I hope you enjoy it! And please review! There's a plate of virtual cookies for anyone who does ^^

Emma


	2. Chapter 2

Hey guys! Another chapter for you! Replies to reviews below:

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**If I Couldn't, I Wouldn't - **I hope thats a good thing! Enjoy this chapter ^^  
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**Anagram For Grace - **Thank you! Doubt it'll be as good as the original idea you had for it, but I really hope you enjoy it!

XChapter-2X

"What do you need, honey?" the secretary asked me when I walked in the office.

"I was sent out of my class…?" I said-asked. (Sasked?)

"Oh… Chemistry?" she asked knowingly.

I nodded.

"Mr. Moen can be a bit harsh," she told me like we were co-conspirators. "How about you go spend the rest of the period in the library?"

"Thanks." Still clutching my books, I left the office and meandered down to the rather small library. It was empty except for the old librarian.

"Ms. Winters send you?" she asked in her crackling voice.

"Erm… yes?" Was Ms. Winters the secretary? God, I hope so.

The librarian nodded and pointed to the six tables spread around the room. "Have a seat and find something to work on."

Silently, I walked over to a table and took a seat. But one question: What does one work on when one has had no homework? I suppose I could work on the summer chem project if I knew what the heck it was. Desperately feeling the need for something familiar, I pulled out my sketch pad, it was already nearly full. I'd have to buy a new one soon.

I had nothing particular in mind so I soon found myself sketching the same dark prince that I always drew, but from a new angle. I drew the sketch from beneath him, looking up into his face, his sword pointing towards me, like he towered over me. Which he probably would if he existed. I paid detail to the eyes, lightly shading them.

Dammit. I'd spent no more than 5 minutes in his presence, and blondie was already in my thoughts. I shook my head, and went over the eyes a little harder, darkening them to an almost black.

"It's not half bad," said a voice from behind me.

I jumped and turned around to stare straight at the boy who sat next to me in chemistry.

"You."

He plopped down in the chair next to me. "Me."

"What are you doing here?"

He shrugged nonchalantly. "I got myself kicked out of the class. You're quite the trendsetter."

"Yes, but unlike you I generally don't piss my teachers off," I pointed out.

He feigned surprise. "What makes you think I piss my teachers off?"

Well for one his looks. He had the flashing eyes and casually messy hair of someone who knew the exact extent of their natural beauty and flaunted it. And for another, he fairly reeked of defiance.

"Just a guess."

I was rewarded (wait, what?) with another of his smiles. "My name's Jace, by the way."

"Clary," I responded.

Jace's grin turned devilish. "Can I call you Clare-Bear?"

If I had the ability to raise just one eyebrow, I would have used that epic skill just then. As it was, I had to settle for two. "Absolutely not."

"Why not?"

"Do I look like I'm five?"

He blew out his breath and glanced over me. "Do you really want me to answer that?"

Angrily, I turned back to my sketch, employing the use of the oh-so-mature cold shoulder method, tempted to put my headphones in just so I would have an excuse for not talking to him.

I could almost hear him grin. This was what he lived for. Irritating people.

"Whatcha drawing?" Jace asked, peering over my shoulder.

"Go away."

"Hmm… odd but I didn't picture Go away as having a sword." He grinned when I glared at him. "I'm amazed that you haven't asked me yet what I did to wind up here."

"I don't know, Jace. What did you do?" I sighed, hoping he might launch into some long story that I wouldn't have to listen to.

"Defended you."

That surprised me. I barely knew him and he had defended me to Moen. "Why were you defending me?"

"Well," he leaned back in his chair, resting his feet up on the table, "I don't really think you _needed _anyone to step in and defend you but he was being an ass so… I told him that."

"Really?" I asked skeptically.

I swear he blushed. "Not in so many words but I did point out that there was no conceivable way you could have possibly know we had to write a five page essay on some chemical change was observed over break."

"I bet he liked that a lot."

"Of course," Jace grinned. "He liked it so much, he entirely lost his temper and spent about ten minutes screaming about my impertinence. I'm just a kid, I don't know my place, he has authority over me, blah blah whatever. So I decided I would spare everyone the headache and left the room right as he was picking up steam."

"You're joking, right?"

"Nope. I was planning on being the first one to piss him off this year but you, Clare-Bear, beat me to it so I had to be the first one to walk out on him ever. You did great but there's no way you'll be able to beat that."

I smiled and shook my head. "He's gonna have your head."

Jace smirked and raised one eyebrow. "I'm going to choose not to respond to that and ruin your innocence."

Awkward.

"So what're you going to do if he freaks on your girlfriend?" I asked, bringing us both back to reality.

"Oh he won't. She's his favorite. Besides, if he did while I'm here, my only regret would be that I wouldn't get to see it."

"That's horrible!"

He looked thoughtful for a moment and shook his head. "Not really. We're breaking up."

I'm sure I looked attractive while I tried to figure that one out. "So you mean to say that you're in the process of breaking up with the girl you were feeling up like twenty minutes ago?"

"Uh-huh." He nodded and grinned like a little kid. "Would you like me to enlighten you?"

I nodded.

Jace glanced around as if checking that the coast was clear and then motioned for me to lean in. I did as he directed; our faces inches apart.

"Okay, enlighten me."

"Word has it that my girlfriend has been rendezvousing with the quarterback for some time now so I figured it's time to sever our ties, thus ending our relationship. Besides, I can always get any other girl just like her."

I leaned back and decided to ignore that last comment. "Do you always talk like that?"

"Generally? Yes."

I narrowed my eyes and shook my head at him. "I would never have picked you for a nerd."

"Brilliantly intelligent I am, unattractively geek-ish I am not."

"So you think you're attractive?"

"No." He paused for dramatic effect. "I know that I am _stunningly_ attractive."

"Don't you know modestly is an attractive trait?"

He scoffed. "They just say that to make ugly people feel better. The meek may inherit the earth but for now it belongs to the conceited, like me."

"At least you're aware that you're an ass," I pointed out.

Jace tsked at me. "I am not an ass. I have one, a very nice one at that, but I am _not _an ass." And with that, he leaned back in his chair so far he tipped it over.

I laughed as he cursed and waved his limbs frantically in the air, trying to get up.

"A little help would be nice," he grunted.

"I don't think you'll accept my help, seeing as I would only push you over again."

He stopped struggling and looked directly at me. "That does put a damper on our relationship."

I shrugged and allowed him to find his own way back to his feet just as the bell rang.

"I'll see you around, Clare-Bear!" he called as I walked out of the library.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Woo! 2nd chapter up! Thank you all so much for your reviews, I really do appreciate them. I hope that I'll do this story justice as Anagram For Grace did such a fantastic job to begin with


	3. Chapter 3

I am so happy with the response this story has been given! So much love for you all!

**Guest: **Thanks for the review!  
**Bibee: **EEK! I'm so happy you like it! And don't worry, I will continue it hehe  
**If I Couldn't I Wouldn't:** It will get funnier I promise ^^  
**jjdakin: **Thank you for the review, hope you enjoy!

XChapter-3X

This school had block scheduling meaning most of my classes lasted for ninety minutes. Luckily for me, Chemistry was a skinny, lasting only forty-five minutes. Unfortunately that meant I had it all year. My second class was also a yearlong skinny; Trigonometry. I may be weird, but I liked trig. Sort of. At least the teacher was a decent human being.

After trig I had Spanish II for a block. Awesome... ninety minutes with the teacher I had over heard several people call crazy. I was assigned to sit in the second desk in the first row, "detrás de Sergio y al lado de Isabel." I was then assigned the Spanish name "Clareta" since someone else was already "Clarisa".

As soon as I sat down, the boy in front of me and the girl next to me spun around in their desks to stare.

"She's new," said the boy. "I'd remember that hair."

The girl nodded in agreement. "It'd haunt my nightmares."

"I _can_ hear you."

"We know."

"Okaaay."

The boy smiled at me. He was cute in a geeky way with brown hair, dark brown eyes, and glasses. The girl however, was gorgeous, in the intimidating way. Her hair was black and wavy, falling halfway down her back and her eyes were so dark I swear they were black. She didn't smile at me. When she noticed I was looking at her, she turned quickly away to stare at the board.

"I'm Simon," the boy introduced himself. "That's Isabelle."

"Clary," I answered.

"Nice hair," he commented.

"Nice glasses."

"So, where're you from?" He had a strange habit of cocking his head to the side when he asked a question. Strange but cute.

"New York."

He whistled softly. "Quite a change then, huh?"

I nodded emphatically.

"Oye!" the teacher cried, standing at the front of the class. "En español, por favor."

"Talk to you later?" Simon suggested.

"Yes."

In the rush to get to lunch after class, I lost Simon. Oh well, it was a small enough school that I was sure I'd see him again. Careful not to get stepped on, I made my way to the opposite side of the school and to my locker. I threw my books in, checked to make sure all my things were still there, and headed off to lunch.

Every single member of the student body seemed to have beaten me to the line so I stood awkwardly at the back. I sighed and got ready for a very boring wait when who should pop up at my elbow but Simon.

"Mind if I stand here?" he asked.

"Go right ahead. Why were you so late getting to lunch?" I asked.

"I wasn't. I was further up but you looked so sad and lonely that I couldn't bear to see you alone. Besides I'm not hungry." His stomach chose that moment to growl and give him away. "Not _that _hungry," he amended.

I laughed. "You're a horrible liar."

He shrugged. "I try. So back to where we left off in Spanish. What brings you from New York? And don't you dare tell me it's complicated."

"Twilight reference? No thanks."

He looked at me suspiciously. "You don't like Twilight?"

I stared at him like he was crazy. "Don't like it? I can't stand it. All this obsession over a vampire who doesn't even drink blood? Lame."

"Totally. It's sad, really. Why Edward? Why not Dracula?"

"So you've read the books?" I asked, trying not to giggle.

Simon shrugged. "In passing."

"Team Edward or team Jacob?"

"I'm actually team Rosalie. Now _there _is an attractive vampire. How about you? Edward or Jacob?"

I snorted. "I'm actually team Ron."

"Ron?" he asked.

"Ron," I confirmed.

"But no one's team Ron, everyone's team Harry!" he protested.

"Exactly. Harry has too much support, Ron's just kind of… there. Plus us gingers have to stick together," I said with a grin.

"Do you really count as a ginger? Like most gingers actually have hair that's more orange. Yours is legitly red."

"Thanks?"

"No prob, Bob." He grinned and pushed his glasses up his nose.

"Hey, Si," Isabelle said, passing by with her lunch tray.

"Wha- Hey Isabelle!" he yelled after her retreating figure.

"You like her," I pointed out.

"What? Isabelle? No… no, I don't like Isabelle. She's… nice though…" His face was slowly turning bright red and he'd suddenly become very interested in a scuff mark on the floor.

"Did I ever tell you you're a horrible liar?"

"Might have mentioned it…"

"Simon, you're a horrible liar. Who's Isabelle sitting with?" I asked, changing the subject but not really.

Simon glanced up and instantly found Isabelle. "Oh that's her brother, Alec Lightwood. The one that looks like her? The other one is this kid Sebastian Verlac. He's a bit of a loner but he hangs out with them sometimes. He kind of has a weird vibe, slightly creepy. And that…" he pointed to the boy just joining the table, "is-"

"Jace," I interrupted.

"-Wayland. You know him?" Simon's expression darkened slightly.

"Barely. We sit next to each other in chemistry."

"You have chemistry? You poor, poor girl. Good luck." He seemed to be honestly concerned.

"Thanks," I mumbled half to him and half to the cook who had just dumped a scoop of mushy potatoes and rubbery bits of ham on my tray. We had talked the duration of the line.

"Mr. Moen is a bit of a..." Simon searched for the right word as he grabbed a milk.

"Sociopath?" I supplied.

"Yes, exactly." He held out a little card to a woman sitting at a computer to be scanned.

Did I need one of those cards? I didn't have one…

"Got your card?" the woman asked without looking at me.

"No…"

"End of the- oh wait. Last name?" she asked.

"Fray."

"Got ya."

"So how did your first class with the sociopath go?" Simon asked, having waited for me to pay for my lunch.

"Oh it was fantastic, lemme tell you. I lasted a whole two minutes before he kicked me out."

Simon looked impressed. "Wow, I would not have expected that. What happened?" he asked as he sat down at a table.

I shrugged and sat across from him. "He demanded I turn in an assignment I'd never been assigned."

"Typical," he spat.

For a few moments we were silent as we both attempted to choke down the food.

"So, Clary," Simon said finally, "are you planning on attending the back to school dance Friday?"

I took a sip of my milk. "Where's it at?"

"The ballroom at Eagle Inn. The seniors 'host' it for the rest of us," he explained.

"I don't know, I suppose I will. We'll see."

Simon leaned across the table towards me. "Please go," he begged. "I'm being forced to go and I hate dances."

I raised my eyebrows. "I'll think about it."

He looked like he was going to say something more but got cut off by the bell.

"See you later, Fray!" Simon called as we parted ways.

"Bye!" I called back over my shoulder, when I turned back around I found myself staring straight into the golden eyes of Jace Wayland.

"Hey, Clare-Bear," he said softly and walked off.

I stood there for a moment confused. His tone wasn't the same it had been before, he'd sounded almost sad. I didn't get it.

Jace cursed himself as he just walked away from her. If only he'd said something in the library… But that Simon kid had beaten him to it. _Probably better for her_, he admitted to himself. He could never see it working out between and the small but strong girl. As much as he tried to reason with himself, part of him knew he would always regret not taking the chance to ask her to the dance. The words he should have said echoed in his head. Oh well. He grabbed his gym clothes out of his locker and headed off to his favorite class. It wasn't like he couldn't have any other girl he wanted.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

Right guys, you have options!

Would you like me to start putting a little preview of the next chapter at the end of chapters? Or leave it as is?

Also, would you like to see Luke replace stuffy Mr Moen as Chemistry teacher?

Review and tell me your thoughts!

Love,

Emma


	4. Chapter 4

Hello my doves!

I am legitly happy with the reception that this has got, you guys make me smile!  
**Spitfire303: **I'm glad you like it! And it may or may not happen... I've got some things planned yet! ^^  
**If I Could I Wouldn't:** This is true! I caught my mom reading 50 Shades, and then I decided I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole! And yep, poor Jace misunderstood the whole thing.  
**Lamina96: **Thank you! Hope you enjoy this chapter  
**5ophia123: **I'll try and update as fast as I can! Between this fic, my LOTR fic and work I'm pretty busy, but I'll try and keep updates regular

Not mine, I'm not the genius of Cassandra Clare. If it was mine, Jace would be locked in my room and not allowed to leave ; )

XChapter-4X

After lunch I only had two lessons left, Art Survey and Junior English. English was bound to be boring but I was looking forward to art.

The art room was set up like an auditorium. There were five step-like levels that each had two tables on them. In the depression at the bottom was where all of the supplies and the teacher's desk were located. Behind the teacher's desk was an eccentric collage of posters and sketches.

"Have a seat anywhere you'd like," the teacher said. He was a strange man, moderately tall and insanely skinny. He didn't stand quite straight so his long brown work coat hung off his body in the front. His hair was short mainly black, but with streaks of grey, and he wore glasses that he was constantly pushing up his nose.

I found a spot towards the back and settled in. I only half listened through the art room rules lecture and the following lecture on great artists. Finally, he got around to telling us what our first project was; contour line drawings. Self portraits.

I frowned slightly at the last specification. Why did we seriously have to draw ourselves? People would see my picture and mistake me for a Raggedy Ann doll which actually wasn't on my list of things to do at a new school. The teacher stated the dimensions of the paper and set us to work.

"Want me to get you a paper?" the girl on my left asked.

I smiled at her. "Thanks."

She smiled back briefly and clomped down the stairs. I was instantly glad I hadn't offered to fetch supplies, falling in front of the class didn't seem like the most appealing idea in the world. The girl came back and handed my paper to me.

She flashed me another brief, close lipped smile before setting to work on her drawing. I didn't mind the lack of talking; it allowed me to concentrate better. I picked up a pencil, noted it didn't have an eraser and began to draw.

By the time the bell rang, I had the general outline of my face. Great progress, I know.

"Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it soon," the teacher assured me on my way out.

When I walked into English I was worried I might have headed back into first grade. The desks were set up to form three sides of a square with an open area in the center. Seriously, what the heck? The seating arrangement was posted on the board and I might have gotten a bit more excited for the class when I saw that I sat next to Simon Lewis. This school wasn't that big, he had to be the only Simon. If he wasn't, I was pretty sure I'd die.

"Clary!" Simon exclaimed (thank God). "I get to sit by you again!"

I smiled back. "Darn."

On the other side of Simon sat Isabelle Lightwood, looking extremely haughty. I couldn't believe that any girl could naturally look like that, not that her make-up was natural or anything, but even without it she would have been the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen. I secretly wished I could be like her, tall and strong. Not the little freckled joke most people took me as. I was glad I didn't sit directly next to her; I don't think my self-esteem could've handled that.

I glanced around the room, recognizing another kid from my trig class and a couple from art. There was one empty desk left and that was to the right of me.

"Looks like we're waiting on one more…" said a girl who was standing at the front of the room. Weird.

I looked again.

She was… the teacher? I couldn't believe it. She looked like she could be a distant relative of Isabelle's, tall, dark haired (not black, though), brown eyed. The fact that she was wearing Aeropostal clothing didn't really help her stand out as an authority figure either.

Simon chuckled. "Find her yet?"

"Who?"

"Ms. McWorthy. She kind of blends in a bit."

"Is she even old enough to be a teacher?" I whispered back.

"She's actually twenty-seven," Isabelle informed me.

"I would've guessed twenty, tops."

"She's hot," Simon stated. At the exact same moment, Isabelle and I both turned to stare at him.

"You realize that's creepy?" I said at the same time Isabelle said, "She's our teacher!"

We both glanced at each other and laughed awkwardly. Simon raised one eye-brow. "Getting along now, are we?"

"Just because we agree-" she began.

"That doesn't necessarily mean we're friends."

"So you just happen to finish each other's sentences?"

"Um, yes," we said together.

We didn't laugh that time. The three of us just sat in complete awkward silence.

"I'll just not talk anymore," I offered.

"Sounds like a plan."

"Has anyone seen Jace?" McWorthy asked, glancing around the classroom as though her missing pupil was hiding there.

"He was here earlier…" the kid from my trig class said.

"Oh great, Wayland's in here?" Simon groaned. "Just when I thought I was going to have one decent class this semester…"

Isabelle's eyes flashed. "What do you have against my brother?"

"He's your brother?" I was amazed. Jace and Isabelle looked nothing alike.

"Adopted. Simon, answer the question."

Simon shrugged. "We just don't get along the best."

Isabelle scrutinized him with her black eyes. "Have you even held a conversation with him?"

"I don't need to." Simon slouched down in his seat as though that comment ended the conversation.

Isabelle opened her mouth to retaliate when she stopped and smiled at something just behind me. "Hey, Jace."

I swiveled in my seat to see Jace standing there, looking all bright and golden. "Hello Isabelle, Simon," he paused and gave me a smug smile, "Clare-Bear."

"Alright, now that we have everyone here, let's get started, mmkay? Take a copy of Much Ado About Nothing and pass the rest down," she directed.

"Aw man. I hate this play," Simon muttered beside me.

"Shush! It's one of my favourites" I told him.

"Does everyone have a copy? Mmkay, good. Now on the board behind me are the classroom rules and expectations. You guys have probably gone over that like a billion times today so you should know it. Mmkay. Now the sheet of paper in the first page of your books has the major units and projects listed out with a general date of when we'll study them, mmkay? As you can see we're starting out with Much Ado. I know you studied Romeo and Juliet last year, and are probably sick of Shakespeare but this year we're going to be acting it out instead of just reading a play, mmkay."

"Is it just me," I muttered, "or does she really like to say 'mmkay'?"

"Don't worry," Simon muttered back, "I'm keeping count." He pointed to a section of tally marks on the corner of his notebook. "So far we're at five right now."

"It's actually seven," Isabelle whispered. "You missed two while you we're going on about the play."

"And you just missed another three while you were talking," Jace added.

Simon drew in the other marks.

"Do we have any volunteers for Claudio?" McWorthy asked.

No one moved.

"Mmkay, Jace," (he looked mildly outraged), "mmkay now pick someone to be Hero."

Several girls sat forward in their desks expectantly. Glancing around the room I saw that Isabelle, some girl I hadn't noticed before, and I were the only one's _not_ attempting to get Jace's attention. I caught the eye of the other girl and she raised one eyebrow and smirked.

"Um… Clary," Jace said. I stared unbelievingly at him. He gave me a devilishly sweet smile.

"Ms. McWorthy?" asked the girl who had smirked at me. "When are auditions for the school play?"

"We were gonna have them tonight but I have detention and we didn't make an announcement."

"People already have detention?" A few people laughed. I self-consciously sank lower in my desk.

McWorthy shrugged. "There's only a couple."

"Oh, Clare-Bear," Jace whispered, "Did I forget to tell you? I'll be seeing you after school in detention."

When the final bell rang, Jace and I stayed in our seats while the rest of the class filed out.

"See ya, Fray," Simon called.

"Tell Maryse I'm gonna be late," Jace said to Isabelle. She nodded as she left.

Oddly enough, Ms. McWorthy followed everyone else out into the hall. I moved my books so that they were conveniently positioned for a nap. Unfortunately, Jace wasn't having any of that.

"Tired Clare-Bear?"

"Shut up," I mumbled into my arm, refusing to look at him.

"Leave her alone, Wayland," an unfamiliar voice said.

I sat up and looked for the source. Lo and behold, there was the smirking girl. In her hands she held a calculus book. "AP classes," she explained. "They kick your ass."

"How'd you end up here?" Jace asked her.

One corner of her mouth twisted up into a smile. "You shall never have the satisfaction of knowing that."

"Boring." He huffed

Her hazel eyes sparkled. "Get used to disappointment, Wayland. I'm Anna Maria, by the way."

"Hi. I'm Clary."

"I know. And welcome to the ninth circle of Hell. I hope you're enjoying your stay." Anna Maria's smile was lifeless.

"Anna Maria has studied Dante's Inferno," Jace explained, sounding bored.

I glared at him. "Thanks but I knew what she was talking about. But why the ninth circle?"

She looked at me as though it should be obvious. "First of all, the ninth circle of Hell is reserved for betrayers. High school is the breeding ground of betrayal plus this building is always freezing. Therefore, circle the ninth."

I nodded. This girl was a tad bit depressing.

"I still want to know who sent the school's best student to detention," Jace said.

"Take a guess."

"Mr. Moen?" I suggested.

"The one and only." She then opened her text book and said no more. After a few moments, Jace got up and moved over by her.

"Are you alright, Anna?" I heard him whisper softly.

"Leave me alone, Jace. I don't want to talk about it."

"I just want you to know that you're not alone," he continued. "You can't pretend you're fine forever. Even the best fall down."

Anna Maria smiled the first real smile I'd seen on her. "Thanks Jace, but I can't talk about it yet."

He nodded. "Let me know when you can." And with that he came back to sit by me. I did my best to occupy myself so I didn't feel quite so much like I was prying. Then I felt something hitting my arm.

I looked down and saw Jace had pushed a note onto my desk.

"_Over the summer her best friend committed suicide and her brother was paralyzed in a car crash._"

I glanced from the note, to the girl it was about and then to the boy who wrote it. Maybe it was possible there was a bit more to him than I'd thought.

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This is where I go off on a tangent from the original story. I've chosen Much Ado, as it's one of my favourite Shakespeare plays, and I can relate each character from TMI to a character in the play, you'll understand where I'm going with this I promise hehe. Anywhoo's, I'll be setting up a few polls on my profile for this story, please vote and tell me what you think!

As always, please review!

Love  
Emma


	5. Chapter 5

I abolutely adore you guys! Seriously, thank you for all the reviews, you're all amazing!

**If I Could I Wouldn't: **Much Ado About Nothing is my favourite comedy by Shakespeare! It was made into a film with Kenneth Branagh, Robert Sean Leonard, Emma Thompson and Kate Beckinsale... Check it out! It's really good ^^  
**Tluvsdotty: **Thank you so much! I'm so glad you like it.  
**Spitfire303:** I'm not sure where I'm gonna go with Anna-Marie just yet, but I have a feeling she'll have a bigger part in the story ^^  
**JJdakin:** Thank you! Hope you enjoy this one!

XChapter-5X

Friday morning. I had survived! After that first day, everything had gone well, aside from the occasional issues in chemistry but I was learning how to deal with Mr. Moen. However I was still having issues with the fact that I sat on the left side of a left-handed person. In order for us both to be able to write, Jace and I had to slide to the far sides of our table.

The last day of school before the weekend, school closed early due to the dance. I was happier than I'd been in weeks. I didn't even like dances. But hey, I had some friends and Simon had promised to show even though he was a flight risk. It was enough to even get me through chemistry. Jace was strangely quiet.

When the final bell rang, I ran to my locker, where I found Isabelle waiting for me.

"Come on Clary! I've been waiting for 10 minutes!" she pouted at me.

"Sorry Izzy, teacher kept us behind because some idiot was goofing off," I huffed, out of breath from running.

"Well hurry up! I'm taking you to my house so we can get ready!"

I sighed. The whole 'spending hours getting ready' just wasn't my thing. I was more 'shower, get dressed, put mascara and eyeliner on, brush hair'. I didn't go overboard like most of the girls at the school.

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As Clary and Isabelle walked into the house, Izzy shouted out in the large reception hall. "Jace! Alec!" Isabelle yelled. "Disappear, Clary's here!"

Alec turned to look at them from the couch in the lounge, not amused. "So? I live here, don't I?"

"You also can be an ass, can't you? Now c'mon, up," she said, shoving him off the couch. Alec then ambled up the stairs towards his room, but Jace was still sat there, looking at Izzy with a smirk on his face.

Jace resisted easily, still smirking. "What if I have to get ready too?"

Isabelle rolled her eyes. "We all know you'll just throw on one of your many fashionable shirts, declare yourself gorgeous, and go."

He acted as though he was appalled. "I have to take the time for pants too!"

"Mmhmm, whatever. Now out!" When she saw that wouldn't work, she tried a different approach. "Alec's left. Go with him."

"No," he flipped on the TV, "I'm watching _What Not to Wear_."

She crossed her arms and stared at him, and Clary rolled her eyes. "Sometimes, Jace Wayland, you're more of a girl than I am. Now go watch your little show up in your room or else I'm going to get angry."

Isabelle angry was a legitimate threat so Jace slowly got up and left the room, leaving the TV running.

"Do you go out of your way to annoy everyone?" she demanded.

He turned back and flashed her a grin. "Nothing personal." But as soon as he turned away his grin vanished. He wasn't looking forward to tonight. In fact, he'd rather be doing anything other than going to a dance. Perhaps he'd go looking for a fight. That was always an idea. This was all so unusual for him. He was used to getting what, or who, he wanted, even if he didn't really want it. Even if people only thought he wanted it. And now… now he was sulking like a child because for once, the one thing he wanted was out of reach. He slammed his door and threw himself on his bed. As all teenage guys, Jace could feel his stomach grumbling half an hour later. He crept down the stairs towards the kitchen, hoping to grab something and get back to his room before Izzy caught him downstairs.

"Shh, someone's in the hall," he heard Isabelle say. "Jace? Remember what I said." Izzy called.

"Which part?" he asked, leaning casually against the doorframe. Clary was sitting at the table with an apple while Isabelle was perched on the counter.

"The important part."

"Hmm… must've slipped my mind," he muttered, completely ignoring Clary on his way to the fridge.

"C'mon Clary, you have to finish getting ready." Isabelle leaped gracefully off the counter and went to lead the other girl away.

Jace had suddenly lost his appetite and threw away the entire bowl of leftover spaghetti he had dished up for himself and returned back to his room.

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The ballroom was mostly dark. White Christmas lights illuminated the dance floor and provided the best lighting for the insecure girls. He could make out people but not details like whose skin wasn't perfect or whose make-up was smeared. The DJ was set up off in a corner. From what Jace could see of him, he was sparkling. Literally.

He had arrived late on purpose, not wanting to see the general reaction when Clary and Isabelle walked in. He had seen them before they'd left and knew they'd cause a stir. It didn't take him long to spot either one. Isabelle was dancing on some boy in her short red dress while Clary seemed stuck over by the refreshments, next to Simon. Jace fought back the unexpected surge of emotion and began to weave his way through the dancers. It seemed as though the entire school had shown up.

He made his way to the DJ who as it turned out, really was sparkling.

"The name's Magnus. Come to request a song?" the DJ asked, winking one glittering eyelid.

Jace was momentarily distracted. "Erm, yeah. Gonna Be In Love by Great Big Planes."

Magnus arched one perfectly plucked eyebrow. "Unusual request, blondie."

"Whatever. Do you have the song or not?"

"Don't worry, charming. I have my ways. I'll put it on in two songs, because you asked so nicely."

"Thank you."

Magnus just nodded and played the next song.

About halfway through the song, Jace realized his time was running out. Now or never.

He moved over to where Clary still stood, Simon nowhere to be seen. He saw her and almost lost his nerve. Isabelle had put her in a flowing knee length white dress. She looked like an angel. But he was Jace Wayland, he could have whatever he wanted. So he walked up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder.

"May I have the next dance, Miss Fray?" he asked.

She looked shocked. "You may." The words slipped out before she could stop them.

The song started then, he took her hand and led her to the center of the floor. His hands were on her hips, hers on his shoulders. Her emerald eyes seemed questioning.

"What?" he asked, the corner of his mouth twitching up.

"I've never heard this song before," she answered, turning her gaze elsewhere.

Jace forced himself to chuckle. "Embarrassed by my presence?"

"What? No! It's just…" she trailed off and glanced away again.

"Just what?"

Clary shrugged but still didn't meet his gaze. "I wouldn't have guessed you to be the dancing type."

Time to be bold. "I'm not."

That got her to look. "Really?"

"Unbelievable though it may be, the only dancing practice I've ever had has been with Alec and he refuses to dance with me in public."

She laughed. "I can't imagine why not."

"It's quite rude."

"Maybe you'd get more dancing practice if you asked more people?" she suggested.

"I asked you, didn't I?"

She blushed and glanced down to the floor and then back to him. "I don't get you," she admitted.

"I don't get me," he responded honestly.

Her gaze turned quizzical again. "For some reason that doesn't exactly surprise me."

"Then you get me more than you think."

She said nothing to that and they danced in silence, swaying as one with the music. Around them other couples drifted about but didn't seem to matter.

"Clary," he said as she said "Jace."

The both looked at each other and laughed.

"Thank you," he murmured, bending to kiss her cheek.

Her face grew pink and she drew away quickly, leaving behind that happy moment. He watched her small form disappear out of the room. He did not move from that spot until the song ended

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Ooohhh something might be happening! I hope you enjoy!

Love  
Emma

(Also, shameless plug, if any of you like Lord Of the Rings, please check out my story, The Union of the Moon and Shadows)


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